74% parents of Delhi NCR want a scheduled Smog Break in schools from Nov 1 – 20 every year

17th November 2019, New Delhi: Every year, 14th November is celebrated as children’s day in schools across Delhi and NCR and usually there is a lot of excitement about it among students. This year, kids had to celebrate children’s day at home. Late on the 13th November, EPCA announced that schools in Delhi NCR will stay shut for the next 2 days due to the extremely dangerous pollution levels. Due to the late-night messages, many students ended up reaching the school breathing the toxic air, only to find out that the school was closed.

LocalCircles conducted a poll among parents in Delhi NCR between 11 -15 November to check how the Government should deal with the closure of schools to protect kids from the dangerous levels of pollution in the air. Residents of Delhi NCR were asked if all schools in Delhi NCR should have a scheduled smog break from Nov 1 – 20 every year. In response, a whopping 74% parents agreed with it while only 19% disagreed with it. The poll received 8,762 responses from residents of Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, Ghaziabad and Faridabad.

74% parents of Delhi NCR want a scheduled Smog Break in schools from Nov 1 – 20 every year

The pollution levels in the month of November have been deteriorating with each passing year. So much so, that the percentage of concerned parents who demanded a smog break has increased from 55% in 2017 to 74% in 2019.

This was the 3rd time on the last 2 weeks that EPCA had ordered closure of schools as the level of pollution had neared the emergency zone. This meant that between November 1 – 17, the schools in Delhi NCR were operational only on 5 days.

Parents also said that the leaves of the smog break could be compensated with reduction of leaves from the summer, winter and spring break combined. The situation has become very tense and parents are concerned about the health and safety of their kids. Hospitals and doctors are reporting a sharp rise in patients with breathing related difficulties and rules like Odd-Even don’t seem to be helping either. It would be best if the voice of the parent community is heard and a mandatory Smog Break in schools is announced in Delhi NCR, starting November 2020 onwards.

LocalCircles will escalate the findings of this survey to the Education Minister, Chief Ministers of Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, and also to the District Magistrates of these cities.